City of New York

Job Description

• CANDIDATE MUST BE SERVING PERMANENTLY IN THE TITLE OF ASSISTANT URBAN DESIGNER OR REACHABLE ON THE ASSISTANT URBAN DESIGNER CIVIL SERVICE LIST***

THE AGENCY

The Department of City Planning (DCP) plans for the strategic growth and development of the City through ground-up planning with communities, the development of land use policies and zoning regulations applicable citywide and by sharing its perspectives on growth and community needs with sister agencies in collaboration with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

The New York City Department of City Planning is a great place to work – cultivating intellectual inspiration, professional development and creativity. Visit our website at www.nyc.gov/planning to access the full listing of job opportunities and to learn more about our great agency.

THE DIVISION

Queens is home to more than 2.4 million residents, a historic peak population. Queens’ extensive ethnic diversity leads the city, and the country and the world. Its growth has been fueled in large measure by an influx of persons arriving from abroad with over 47% foreign born, and its residents speak over 160 languages. Some of the fastest-growing neighborhoods in New York City are located in Queens, with the past decade seeing significant housing growth in areas such as Long Island City and Flushing. The borough fosters the most diverse economy in the region, as a center for industry, manufacturing, freight and distribution, primarily centered around Western Queens and the airports.

The Queens Office is a collegial, collaborative and dynamic work environment that offers exceptional work-life balance and amiable and collaborative coworkers. The Office is responsible for a wide range of planning and design activities, including developing borough-wide and local plans with a focus on affordable housing, resiliency, expanded economic opportunity, and transit-oriented development; reviewing and processing land use applications; leading community outreach; planning for resiliency and climate change; and providing technical and policy guidance and direction on all land use and zoning related matters to the City Planning Commission, local Community Boards, elected officials, and the public at large. The borough’s recent growth is occurring within distinct neighborhood contexts, which vary widely across the borough. Currently, its efforts are focused on directing a range of new housing and economic recovery and expansion opportunities in three transit-rich regional centers – Long Island City, Jamaica and Flushing – ensuring new affordable housing, commercial development and economic opportunity will enliven and support the equitable growth and vitality of Queens neighborhoods.

THE ROLE

The Queens Office at the Department of City Planning is seeking a self-motivated Junior Urban Designer with strong technical planning skills, a positive attitude toward customer and community service, as well as a desire to contribute to an engaging work environment in roles that impact the growth and development of the borough. The Junior Urban Designer would be responsible for the development of borough-wide and local plans, analyzing land use and transportation conditions and needs, reviewing and processing Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) and non-ULURP applications and providing technical assistance on all land use and zoning matters to the agency, City Planning Commission (CPC), elected officials, community boards and the public.

Under supervision, with some latitude for exercising independent initiative and judgment, the selected candidate would perform work, including but not limited to the following:

• Manage Department initiatives, ULURP and non-ULURP projects, contribute to larger planning efforts, including text amendments and coordinate this work with other divisions of the Department, other city agencies, community boards, elected officials and the public
• Review and analyze site plans and development proposals to determine compliance with NYC zoning regulations and the City’s land use planning policies and make recommendations on applications submitted to the Department
• Analyze area land use and transportation factors to contribute to agency/city planning priorities
• Provide project management and other support for private and agency/city land use applications, including the preparation of written briefing materials and reports.
• Advise Director and Deputy Director on policies and standards relating to required reviews of land use applications relating to assigned area and zoning rules, as well as on future policy decisions and potential text amendments
• Strong urban design capabilities with knowledge of physical design practices including site planning and programming, building layout, zoning calculations, massing and architectural design. Knowledge of urban landscape and environmental design and familiarity with resiliency and sustainability measures and best practices.
• Create and organize illustrative, graphic and written materials for presentation and to provide visual recommendations and/or solutions to the City Planning Commission, other governmental agencies and the public in support of proposals, studies and other projects
• Represent the department at meetings of civic, business and community groups, community boards and public agencies
• Support neighborhood planning studies (including research analysis) and produce written technical reports and presentations
• Develop, maintain and utilize working knowledge of all on-going planning, land use, transportation, urban design and zoning studies, as well as community initiatives and studies, with specific and deep knowledge of these topics within all areas of responsibility with a focus in Coastal Resiliency
• Develop, maintain and utilize working knowledge of planning, urban design and zoning best practices, concepts and trends
• Areas of expertise may include affordable housing policy, mixed-use light industrial and residential developments and resilient and sustainable design strategies
• Perform other related tasks and projects

Qualifications

Qualification Requirements

1. A baccalaureate degree in architecture from an accredited college and one (1) year of full-time experience in planning, design, research, investigations and/or studies related to urban design development programs; or

2. Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" above. However, a baccalaureate degree in architecture is required of all candidates. Graduate work leading to an advanced degree in architecture, urban design or city planning may be substituted for the one year of experience described above.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.